


Take Care of You

by theepitomeofamess



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Caretaker Logan, Hurt/Comfort, Logince - Freeform, M/M, One Shot, Short One Shot, logan and roman, logan/roman - Freeform, platonic or romantic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-09 00:44:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16439885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theepitomeofamess/pseuds/theepitomeofamess
Summary: Roman hasn't left his room in a few days, and the others send Logan to check on him.





	Take Care of You

“Can you go check on him,” Patton had asked. “He hasn’t been out of there for days.” The concern in Patton’s voice was mild, meant to keep Virgil calm at all costs, but it overflowed from his dark eyes when he looked to Logan for assistance.

Logan had to admit that he’d had a similar sense of concern. For three days, Roman had refused to leave his room except to steal food or drinks from the kitchen. Three nights in a row, when Logan went through the house to double check that every door and window was securely locked, he’d found light peeking through the space between Roman’s door and its frame when he should have been asleep. Even Logan had to admit that there was a kind of emotional tension leaking through the door, something that he was sure Patton and Virgil felt much more strongly. That tension is probably at least part of the reason Patton requested that Logan be the one to check on Roman.

Two staccato taps on the door. Logan’s signature alert that he was outside waiting for a response. Not a single sound from Roman. Two more taps, the white painted wood smooth under Logan’s knuckles. Another wait with no reward. Reaching down to test the knob, Logan found that the gold knob turned with ease.

“Roman,” Logan asked into the room as he stepped over the threshold into what looked and smelled like a landfill.

Roman’s floor was barely visible under strewn clothes and balled up wads of paper. His bed was immaculately made, completely unused. The air smelled of rivers of coffee, theater butter from popcorn, and something unidentifiable but probably akin to sweat. The smell reminded Logan of a college dorm room during finals week.

Sitting at his desk, Roman hunched over his spiral-bound notebook, pen in hand and laptop open. The screen showed around twenty open tabs, the one on display showing Spotify questioning whether he was still listening. As Logan got closer, careful not to step on anything but floor if he could manage it, Logan noticed that Roman was wearing a pair of ratty burgundy sweatpants and a plain white t-shirt. The shirt, the sheets of paper in the notebook, Roman’s desk, and Roman’s hands were all stained with coffee and ink. Some of the ink had smudged on Roman’s face from where his cheek rested against his palm, eyes barely open and bloodshot from exhaustion.

“Roman,” Logan repeated, trying to be gentle as he tried to get Roman’s attention. Looking up from his notebook for an instant, Roman did everything in his power to sound as chipper as usual.

“What’s up, teach?” Roman’s voice was gravelly from lack of use, and a slightly lower pitch than usual. A common occurrence when he hasn’t gotten enough sleep. Turning away from Logan, Roman grabbed the pot of coffee sitting next to his laptop and took a swig. Logan tried not to think about how unsanitary Roman drinking right from the pot was.

“When was the last time you slept? Or showered?” Logan’s nose crinkled at the stench of stagnation.

“What day is it?” Roman’s response seemed automatic as he peered over the brim of the coffee pot at Logan. Already having had enough, Logan pulled the pot from Roman’s weak grasp.

“Okay, that’s enough.” The amount of ease in the action only strengthened Logan’s concern. If he’d had rest, Roman would’ve fought back, not gone right back to hunching over his notebook. “Here’s what we’re going to do. You’re going to stop working, you’re going to take a bath, then you’re going to sleep.”

“Is that so,” Roman barely hummed. “Is that what I’m gonna do?”

“Yes, it is.” Logan reached under Roman’s hands to snatch the notebook. Catching a glimpse of the page, Logan saw only lines upon lines of circles drawn where Roman’s immaculate cursive usually went. The sight drilled another screw of worry into Logan’s chest. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” Holding out a hand to Roman, Logan hoped that Roman wouldn’t put up much of a fight.

“Lo,” Roman sighed, running his hands through his filthy hair, “I need to work, I need to finish this.”

“This?” Logan held up the page, pointing at the half-filled lines of circles. “You need to finish this? What even is this?” Roman opened his mouth to respond, but Logan wouldn’t let him. “Roman, you need rest. What you’re trying to do is unhealthy and by being unhealthy you’re causing yourself to be unproductive. You’re not doing anyone any good by drawing circles over and over again.” Logan didn’t express how impressed he was that all of the circles seemed to be perfect, all the same size and the exact shape of a circle rather than a particularly round oval. That comment could be tabled for a later time. For now, Logan watched in worry as Roman stared at his hands.

“I,” he struggled to find his words, something that only ever happens when he’s under severe stress. “I can’t let you down, I… I can’t let you guys down.” Taking Roman’s hands in his own, Logan squatted in front of Roman’s, looking up to meet his sunken, red-rimmed eyes. The sight alone made Logan’s eyes burn.

“You’re not letting anyone down by taking care of yourself.” Roman’s eyes remained downcast, threatening to shift back to his work. “Or by letting me take care of you for now.” Before Roman had a chance to ask what Logan meant by that, Logan was guiding him from the desk to the bathroom.

“Lo, what’re you-”

“You prefer it hot, right,” Logan asked, leaning down to turn on the faucet in Roman’s white porcelain tub. “Go get undressed and in the water, I’ll be right back.” Logan added a dash of bath salts to the tub before leaving the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

Standing in the middle of his bathroom, Roman stared at the door wondering what was going on. Roman couldn’t remember any time Logan had taken on the role of caretaker, let alone toward him. It had always been Patton being his parental self toward everyone, and if not him then Virgil’s protective instincts kicked in and he took on the role of caretaker. Logan had never put on that type of persona.

Maybe the shock of the shift was why Roman found himself in the tub when Logan came back in.

Logan didn’t say anything, which only made Roman all the more confused. All he did was pull up the stool from Roman’s vanity to sit behind his head and start washing Roman’s hair. Fingers gently running through Roman’s hair, massaging shampoo into his scalp, Roman closed his eyes hummed contently. He could already feel the gears in his mind slowing, relaxing. Logan really knew how to get a person to relax.

“Hey, Lo?” Logan hummed in response. “Do you take breaks like this? Y’know, when you get overwhelmed with a project?” Logan’s fingers froze for a moment. The moment between the question and when Logan’s fingers started moving again made Roman’s eyes snap open.

“I try to, but it’s hard to remember when your mind’s been racing for so long and it won’t let you rest. Most of the time, this is what I do to help Virgil after a particularly long day and he doesn’t need anything too stimulating. I’ve also gotten Patton to do it a couple times after he had a meltdown, but usually those are rare occasions. Most of the time those two find their comfort in each other.” Roman tried to think of something to say as Logan washed the shampoo out of his hair, finding Roman’s conditioner and running the stuff through his hair, detangling with his fingers as he went.

“How many times have you done this kind of thing?”

“Once or twice for Patton, maybe four times for Virgil if I’m remembering right. Also, I think I’ve done this once for you, but you were very much under the influence. Can you lean forward for me?”

Roman did as instructed, eyes wide with shock as he tried to remember what Logan was talking about. Under the influence? When was the last time Roman got blackout drunk?

“When exactly did that happen?”

“If memory serves, it was after the cast party after closing night when you played JD in Heathers. Somebody gave you a drink with a little something extra and you got a little emotional, to say the least. Patton and Virgil couldn’t get you to calm down, so I took the task upon myself.” Roman tried to remember but Logan’s hands massaging circles into his back with soap that smelled of lavender, forcing the tension out of his muscles, also forced out the thoughts buzzing in his head like hornets. An exhale caused him to hunch further forward.

Logan smiled softly to himself. He always enjoyed doing this kind of thing for the others, but there was something about this time. Roman felt so distinctly different under Logan’s hands than Patton or Virgil did. Patton was softer, almost like the mascot for those Pillsbury pastries he loves so much. Still muscular, sure, but much softer, almost to the point of squishiness, and the few times that Logan had done this for him there had been little to no muscle tension to begin with. Virgil was on the opposite end of the spectrum, everything about him feeling brittle, seconds away from breaking. Logan always found himself being a little more careful than he should be with Virgil because of this, because of the feeling that tapping the right place just a little too forcefully could cause him to shatter.

Roman’s back was pure muscle. With every other exhale, Logan could feel tension being released under his hands. Scars Roman had earned in fights scattered and slashed across his back, a few of them still looking fresher than the others. Logan made note to be more tender at these points. Noticing that Roman’s head was lolling lazily, Logan poured water over his back to get rid of the soap, then through his hair to wash out the conditioner.

“All right, here’s a towel,” Logan handed Roman one of his better plush white towels, “there’s a fresh set of pajamas on the counter. I’ll be right back.” Roman couldn’t help but smile as Logan left.

Carefully getting himself up, dry, and dressed, Roman noticed how good he felt in comparison to what felt like both five minutes and a lifetime ago. He felt about ten pounds lighter and while his head was still swimming with exhaustion, there was relatively no stress left in his body. The pajamas Logan had chosen consisted of his red sweatpants with black Mickey Mouse logos scattered across the fabric, and a lightweight black t-shirt that managed to hang loose without looking baggy. Roman made a mental note to return the favor to Logan soon.

Ruffling his hair with the towel in an attempt to further dry it, Roman stepped back into his room only for his jaw to drop.

Everything was cleaned and straightened. All of the papers had been picked up, the clothes sat in the hamper waiting to be washed, the popcorn bags and other food wrappers all gone. His coffee pot was empty and clean, replaced on the far side of his desk away from his closed laptop and notebook. Something in Roman couldn’t believe that Logan had done this - No, he couldn’t believe that Logan had done it for him.

“Feeling better?” The question shook Roman as he turned to see Logan re entering his room, a glass of water in hand. Concern still swam in his eyes, though he kept himself strictly expressionless for the most part. Roman couldn’t help but smile.

“Much, thank you. I think I might finally be able to get some work-”

“No.” Roman squinted at the word, his confusion stalling him long enough for Logan to get back across the room and take his hand, guiding Roman to his bed. “You’re going to bed and you’re going to sleep until you wake up naturally.”

“Logan, I really don’t-” Logan stopped where he was, staring Roman down with eyes drowning in aggressive worry.

“Do you feel yourself swaying?” Roman’s brow furrowed at the question, heart punching his ribs at the break in Logan’s voice. “Because ever since I got you to your feet you’ve looked like you’re on the deck of a boat in rocky water.” Roman bit the inside of his cheek, refusing to admit that he had noticed a bit of dizziness. “Drink this. Sips, don’t chug it.” Roman took the glass Logan handed him, sipping at the water as Logan continued guiding Roman to his bed. As much as he loved a good argument with Logan, he could tell that in this state it was best not to challenge him.

“Look, Lo,” Roman tried to reason softly as he sat on the bed, “I get that you’re worried, and I appreciate the concern, but there’s really no need to-”

“Do I need to lay down with you and hold you to make sure you go to sleep, or are you going to get some rest without my supervision?” Roman’s eyes widened at the question. Hold him?

“Logan, what’re you-” Roman tried to stand up only to get Logan’s hand on his shoulder pushing him back down.

“Okay, then.” Before he knew it, Logan had positioned Roman under his blankets and gotten on the bed to lay beside him. Snaking one arm around Roman’s waist, Logan pulled him so that Roman’s back was against his chest and he couldn’t move, cocooning Roman in his warmth.

“Are you spoo-”

“Shut up and go to sleep before I make you take one of Virgil’s emergency ambien.” Roman almost chuckled at the threat. Roman allowed his head to sink deeper into the pillow, his vision slipping as he watched Logan’s hand resting on the bed next to him. Reaching out, Roman laid his hand over Logan’s, intertwining their fingers.

Once again, Logan found himself feeling tension release from Roman, every exhale bringing his body into a more relaxed state. Strength still radiated from him, as did heat, but it didn’t take long for him to go still, finally asleep.

Logan was just beginning to slip into sleep himself when Roman shifted in his sleep. Flipping around, the prince pulled himself closer to Logan, wrapping his arms around him and burying his face in his chest. Logan couldn’t help but smile, especially when he saw Roman’s totally relaxed face. Pressing his face into Roman’s still damp hair, Logan promised himself that he’d check up on Roman more often to make sure he’s okay.


End file.
